Castro Ventosa

Raúl Pérez’s family winery.

The first reference to the winemaking tradition of the Pérez family dates from 1752, when an ancestor of Raúl Pérez wrote in his will that after his death a glass of wine had to be offered to everyone attending his wake. A producer of bulk wine for most of its history, in 1989 the winery bottled its first estate wines, and in 1991 bodega Castro Ventosa was given its current name after a Roman archaeological site located in the village of Valtuille de Abajo, in the westernmost part of the DO Bierzo.

The estate vineyards of Bodega Castro Ventosa cover a surface area around 85 hectares, a significant part of which are planted with old vines over 80 years of age. The main variety is Mencía, the flagship red grape of the DO Bierzo, which shares the land with Godello, the most important local white grape. The wines of Castro Ventosa are made following the style that has given worldwide fame to Raúl Pérez, with whole cluster fermentations and mild extractions conveying freshness and transparency.

The wine portfolio of Castro Ventosa winery ranges from the excellent entry-level red, El Castro de Valtuille Mencía Joven, one of Spain's absolute best values, to superb site expressions like Valtuille Cepas Centenarias, one of Bierzo's most distinguished wines. Yearly production is between 250,000 and 300,000 bottles. César Márquez, the nephew of Raúl Pérez, is in charge of the daily management.

Year of foundation: 1989
Address: C/. El Barredo, 27A
City: Valtuille de Abajo
Province: León
Zip code: 24530
Country: Spain
Phone number: 34 987 56 21 48
www.castroventosa.com
Guided visits? No
Wine tourism services? No